Comparative clinical evaluation of the efficacy of a new method for caries diagnosis and excavation

The purpose of this study is to compare the efficiency of fluorescence-aided caries excavation (FACE) to remove carious dentin primary teeth with that of conventional methods. After caries excavation was carried out, dentin surfaces were conventionally inspected using visual tactile criteria and 415 cavities which were classified as caries-free, re-inspected with Face-Light and caries detector dye (CDD) methods. Orange-red fluorescing areas classified as carious dentin, as well as stained carious dentin. All the data were recorded according to localization of the caries and determination efficiency of the methods. X(2) test was used to compare the mean values of both Face-Light and dye applications, while Wilcoxon test performed to evaluate the effectiveness for each diagnostic method. A total of 273 patients with 415 Class II (OM/OD) cavities (1.65 ± 0.52 teeth per patient) with carious lesions in molar and premolar teeth, were examined. Out of 415 teeth, in 149 teeth (35.9%) no caries findings had been illustrated. While FACE detected remaining carious or partially removed areas in 237 teeth (57.2%), CDD stained only 29 teeth by itself (P < 0.05). In conclusion, FACE has a higher detectability compared to visual inspection and caries detector dye in diagnosis and removal of carious dentin.